AthlonSports.com - Texas Longhornshttp://athlonsports.com/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns
enCollege Football's Top 50 Games to Watch in 2014http://athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-games-watch-2014
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">College Football&#039;s Top 50 Games to Watch in 2014</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p>You need&nbsp;to know which games you can&rsquo;t miss in 2014? Here is a comprehensive list of the Top 50 must-see college football games of the year. Set the DVR now.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/alabama-crimson-tide.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/auburn-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />1. Auburn at Alabama (Nov. 29)</h5><p>Not only are in-state and conference bragging rights on the line for 364 days in the nation&rsquo;s biggest event this year, but the winner of this one game also played in each of the final five BCS National Championship Games. And after the way last year&rsquo;s clash ended, fans can bet the intensity will reach a fevered pitch by Rivalry Week &mdash; especially, if there is as much on the line in 2014 as there was last fall.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30694-1/Oregon_001.jpg" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/stanford-cardinal.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />2. Stanford at Oregon (Nov. 1)</h5><p>The Pac-12 South has gotten much better and has its own elite battles but the top ticket in the Pac-12 this fall is still the Ducks and Cardinal. The winner of this game has won the last four Pac-12 titles and that is likely the case again this fall. A knee injury hampered Marcus Mariota last year and a fully healthy QB for Oregon could finally give the Ducks a win over the Cardinal with No. 8 under center.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ucla-bruins.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30694-1/Oregon_001.jpg" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />3. Oregon at UCLA (Oct. 11)</h5><p>There is no better quarterback matchup in the nation than when Mariota and the Ducks fly south to battle Brett Hundley and the Bruins in the Rose Bowl. This is likely a preview of the Pac-12 title game and could have divisional, conference and national championship implications. Loosen up the scoreboard operator for this one.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30694-1/Oregon_001.jpg" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-state-spartans.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />4. Michigan State at Oregon (Sept. 6)</h5><p>It cannot be overstated what a win for Michigan State in this game would mean for the Big Ten. So Oregon cannot overlook the rebuilt Sparty defense early in the year or the Ducks could be knocked out of playoff contention by Week 2. The schematic chess match between Marcus Mariota and Mark Dantonio&#39;s defense should be fascinating to watch.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-state-spartans.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ohio-state-buckeyes.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />5. Ohio State at Michigan State (Nov. 8)</h5><p>Some of the luster has certainly worn off this monumental showdown but these are still the two best teams in the Big Ten. The winner of this game is still likely the East Division champ, is still likely to win the Big Ten title and is still in line to snag the final playoff spot. This should still be a physical clash of top-ranked teams.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/oklahoma-sooners.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/baylor-bears.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />6. Baylor at Oklahoma (Nov. 8)</h5><p>The Bears have never won in 11 tries in Norman and the Big 12 title likely hangs in the balance on Nov. 8 when Art Briles brings his squad into Memorial Stadium. This was a 29-point blowout in favor of Baylor last year in Waco but both teams will be different this fall. Bryce Petty will have to be near perfect and the BU defense must develop before November if it wants to win this marquee showdown.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/lsu-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/alabama-crimson-tide.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />7. Alabama at LSU (Nov. 8)</h5><p>The Tigers aren&rsquo;t picked to finish first, second or third in the SEC West but that doesn&rsquo;t take much away from what is a yearly battle between these two powerhouses. Bama doesn&rsquo;t have too many tests this fall and a trip to Baton Rouge might be its toughest test (until the Iron Bowl). Nick Saban has won three straight overall in this series and has won two of the last three trips to the Bayou.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/oklahoma-sooners.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />8. Oklahoma vs. Texas (Oct. 11, Dallas)</h5><p>The Red River Shootout (no, I don&rsquo;t call it the Rivalry) enters a new era with a new chapter as Charlie Strong takes part in his first Cotton Bowl showdown. Texas won this game inexplicably a year ago and the Sooners should be plenty motivated to get revenge against a first-year coach. For better or worse, Strong&rsquo;s work with the offensive line will be on full display.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/south-carolina-gamecocks.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-bulldogs.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />9. Georgia at South Carolina (Sept. 13)</h5><p>The SEC East title could be on the line in Week 3 when these two tangle in Columbia. South Carolina lost narrowly in Athens last year after three straight relatively easy wins over the Dawgs from 2010-12. Georgia last won at South Carolina in 2008.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ohio-state-buckeyes.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-wolverines.png" style="height: 50px; width: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />10. Michigan at Ohio State (Nov. 29)</h5><p>Yes, this game may not have as much meaning to either team at the end of the season in terms of the standings but that didn&rsquo;t stop last season&rsquo;s meeting from being an instant classic. Brady Hoke desperately needs wins against a rival and Ohio State could still need this game to win the division. The bottom line is a winless Wolverines-Buckeyes matchup is still must-see TV.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/auburn-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/lsu-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />11. LSU at Auburn (Oct. 4)</h5><p>The battle of Tigers from Auburn and LSU is one of the yearly treats for SEC fans. Last fall, LSU was the only team to beat Auburn in the regular season and it wasn&rsquo;t really competitive. Revenge will certainly be on the minds of Gus Malzahn and his squad. The right to challenge Alabama likely also hangs in the balance for this early October meeting as well.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ucla-bruins.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/usc-trojans.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />12. USC at UCLA (Nov. 22)</h5><p>This crosstown rivalry is getting some extra juice, as both programs appear to be surging in the right direction. Both teams are ranked in the preseason top 20 and both have elite starting rosters. Depth could be a big issue for the Trojans come late November but if they can stay healthy, USC could find itself in a winner-take-all South Division title match against one of its biggest rivals.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ucla-bruins.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/stanford-cardinal.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />13. Stanford at UCLA (Nov. 28)</h5><p>The Cardinal are the two-time defending champs but have to play all of its toughest games on the road, including a trip to UCLA on the final weekend of the regular season. These two played in back-to-back weeks two years ago and the Bruins haven&rsquo;t forgotten. It could happen again this fall. Whether both divisions are already locked up or not, this game should be supremely entertaining.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/clemson-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/south-carolina-gamecocks.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />14. South Carolina at Clemson (Nov. 29)</h5><p>As far as deeply entrenched rivalries and overall importance of the game to the national landscape go, it&#39;s hard to argue the Palmetto State season finale won&#39;t be one the biggest non-conference games of the year. Carolina and Steve Spurrier are eyeing an SEC East title and possible playoff berth, so a loss to the Tigers for the first time since 2008 would be crippling to those hopes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/navy-midshipmen.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/army-black-knights.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />15. Army vs. Navy (Dec. 13, Baltimore)</h5><p>It has no bearing on the national landscape and neither team plays a &ldquo;conference&rdquo; schedule, but the annual bout between Army and Navy has to be recognized. The two have met 114 times with Navy holding a 58-49-7 edge in the all-time series, including a 12-game winning streak. There is a reason this game stands alone on its own weekend (Week 16, technically) and attending this patriotic and emotional contest should be on every fan&rsquo;s sports bucket list.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/mississippi-rebels.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/auburn-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />16. Auburn at Ole Miss (Nov. 1)</h5><p>With the recent influx of talent, Ole Miss finds itself closer to the top of the West Division than the bottom. That means home tests against conference front-runners become marquee showdowns. The Tigers have won eight of the last 10 against the Rebels but Ole Miss dominated Auburn the last time they visited (41-20 in 2012) and has won two out of three in Oxford.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-bulldogs.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/auburn-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />17. Auburn at Georgia (Nov. 15)</h5><p>The Deep South&rsquo;s Oldest Rivalry offered fans one of the most remarkable games in SEC history last fall. While the 2014 edition will be hard pressed to match last year&rsquo;s drama, the gravity of this year&rsquo;s showdown could be much greater as both teams eye a College Football Playoff berth. Auburn hasn&rsquo;t won in Athens since 2005.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/auburn-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/south-carolina-gamecocks.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />18. South Carolina at Auburn (Oct. 25)</h5><p>Auburn got no favors this fall by having to face the top two contenders in the East in crossover play. The difference is the lack of history between these two SEC title contenders. The duo has played just 11 times and Auburn holds a commanding 9-1-1 lead in the series. The Gamecocks would have won the East had it not lost the last meeting in Columbia in 2011. South Carolina&rsquo;s lone win over Auburn came way back in 1933.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/baylor-bears.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />19. Baylor at Texas (Oct. 4)</h5><p>The Bears topped both Texas and Oklahoma at home last year but to repeat as Big 12 champs, Briles&rsquo; bunch must top both conference powers on the road this fall. The Bears have won in Austin before but this isn&rsquo;t Mack Brown&#39;s Longhorns anymore. As far as early-season conference games go, this one is fascinating.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/lsu-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right; height: 50px;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/wisconsin-badgers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />20. Wisconsin vs. LSU (Aug. 30, Houston)</h5><p>From a pure entertainment standpoint, the Tigers-Badgers semi-neutral field battle in Houston might be the one to watch in &#39;14. This game will feature what should be two equally matched opponents, both of whom are expecting to compete for division titles in their respective conferences. LSU and Wisconsin feature two of the best power running games in the land and this game will be a throwback showcase for both.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ucla-bruins.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />22. UCLA vs. Texas (Sept. 13, Arlington)</h5><p>UCLA has Pac-12 South Division title hopes and possibly more as Brett Hundley enters his third season under center. Texas will be three weeks into the Charlie Strong Era in Austin and will provide a nasty early-season test for the Bruins on a &ldquo;neutral&quot; field in Dallas. Both teams have outside chances at landing a spot in the College Football Playoff and an early-season slip up must be avoided for both programs.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/stanford-cardinal.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />22. Stanford at Notre Dame (Oct. 4)</h5><p>This historic rivalry has been elevated in recent years after a memorable overtime goal-line stand for Notre Dame in 2012 and a physical 27-20 victory for Stanford a year ago. Only four times have both teams been ranked at the time of the meeting (28 total games) and three of those have come in the last three years. A fourth straight meeting of two ranked teams is likely to happen again this year and a playoff berth could be on the line this time around.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-bulldogs.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/florida-gators.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />23. Florida vs. Georgia (Nov. 1, Jacksonville)</h5><p>This game is massive for both teams, but especially Gators head coach Will Muschamp. He&rsquo;s 0-3 against UGA and will need a win in Jacksonville to stay in East contention. Despite winning three straight, Mark Richt&rsquo;s squad was anything but dominating as it has won those three contests by a combined 15 points.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/florida-gators.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/lsu-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />24. LSU at Florida (Oct. 11)</h5><p>Looking for a midseason signature win for Florida to prove it&#39;s back in the SEC mix? This is the one Les Miles better be circling. The home team has won the Muschamp-Miles bout in each of the three years, including a 14-6 suffocating home win for the Gators in 2012. Miles is 1-3 in The Swamp.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h5 class="athlon-small-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-roman,helvetica;font-size:22px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-bulldogs.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/clemson-tigers.png" style="width: 50px; height: 50px; margin: 2px; float: right;" />25. Clemson at Georgia (Aug. 30)</h5><p>Last year&#39;s meeting was an epic offensive showdown that featured elite playmakers and provided a memorable experience for everyone. This year, Clemson&#39;s defense is its strength while Georgia returns nine starters on D. With two new quarterbacks for both teams, expect a sloppier performance from both offenses in the first week of the season &mdash; which could be equally as entertaining.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family: helveticaneue-medium, helvetica; font-size: 26px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0em; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; text-align: center;">The Next 25:</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p>26. Florida at Florida State (Nov. 29)<br />27. UCLA at Arizona State (Sept. 25)</p><p>28. Stanford at Washington (Sept. 27)</p><p>29. Florida at Alabama (Sept. 20)</p><p>30. Wisconsin at Iowa (Nov. 22)</p><p>31. Ole Miss at LSU (Oct. 25)</p><p>32. USC at Stanford (Sept. 6)</p><p>33. South Carolina at Florida (Nov. 15)</p><p>34. Alabama at Ole Miss (Oct. 4)</p><p>35. UCLA at Washington (Nov. 8)</p><p>36. Stanford at Arizona State (Oct. 18)</p><p>37. Michigan State at Penn State (Nov. 29)</p><p>38. Arizona State at USC (Oct. 4)</p><p>39. Clemson at Florida State (Sept. 20)</p><p>40. Notre Dame at USC (Nov. 29)</p><p>41. Florida State at Louisville (Oct. 30)</p><p>42. Notre Dame at Florida State (Oct. 18)</p><p>43. Louisville at Clemson (Oct. 11)</p><p>44. Mississippi State at Ole Miss (Nov. 29)</p><p>45. Michigan at Michigan State (Oct. 25)</p><p>46. Washington at Oregon (Oct. 18)</p><p>47. Arizona State at Washington (Oct. 25)</p><p>48. Georgia at Missouri (Oct. 11)</p><p>49. Ohio State at Penn State (Oct. 25)</p><p>50. Auburn at Kansas State (Sept. 18)</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/acc">ACC</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-ten">Big Ten</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/pac-12-0">Pac 12</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/sec">SEC</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/alabama-crimson-tide">Alabama Crimson Tide</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/arizona-state-sun-devils">Arizona State Sun Devils</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/auburn-tigers">Auburn Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/clemson-tigers">Clemson Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-gators">Florida Gators</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-state-seminoles">Florida State Seminoles</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/georgia-bulldogs">Georgia Bulldogs</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/louisville-cardinals">Louisville Cardinals</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/lsu-tigers">LSU Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/michigan-state-spartans">Michigan State Spartans</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/michigan-wolverines">Michigan Wolverines</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/mississippi-state-bulldogs">Mississippi State Bulldogs</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/missouri-tigers">Missouri Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/nebraska-cornhuskers">Nebraska Cornhuskers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/notre-dame-fighting-irish">Notre Dame Fighting Irish</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ohio-state-buckeyes">Ohio State Buckeyes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ole-miss-rebels">Ole Miss Rebels</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oregon-ducks">Oregon Ducks</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/penn-state-nittany-lions">Penn State Nittany Lions</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/south-carolina-gamecocks">South Carolina Gamecocks</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/stanford-cardinal">Stanford Cardinal</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ucla-bruins">UCLA Bruins</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/usc-trojans">USC Trojans</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/washington-huskies">Washington Huskies</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/wisconsin-badgers">Wisconsin Badgers</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-previous-article field-type-entityreference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Previous Article:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Pac-12 Football 2014 Predictions</div></div></div>Fri, 22 Aug 2014 12:30:00 +0000Braden Gall74080 at http://athlonsports.comCollege Football's Top 20 Quarterbacks on the Hot Seat for 2014http://athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-20-quarterbacks-hot-seat-2014
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">College Football&#039;s Top 20 Quarterbacks on the Hot Seat for 2014</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/44279-1/MarquiseWilliams300.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 392px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />The term &ldquo;hot seat&rdquo; is no stranger to college football fans. Hot seat talk usually revolves around coaches, but quarterbacks can be grouped into the same conversation. Without a good coach or quarterback, it&rsquo;s not easy to win games on the FBS level.<br /><br />Considering how valuable quarterbacks are to reaching a bowl game, conference title or national championship, let&rsquo;s take a look at some of the signal-callers on the hot seat for 2014.<br /><br />Something important to keep in mind: This list doesn&rsquo;t necessarily reflect quarterbacks that are in danger of losing their job.<br /><br />With different potential for teams, each quarterback has their own set of expectations for 2014. For instance, Georgia&rsquo;s Hutson Mason is the clear No. 1 quarterback in Athens. If he&rsquo;s just adequate, the Bulldogs are probably ticketed for No. 2 or even No. 3 finish in the SEC East. However, if Mason is an All-SEC candidate, Georgia could be a darkhorse in the national title picture. At Arkansas, Brandon Allen&rsquo;s development will play a key role in determining whether or not the Razorbacks can win a game in SEC play in 2014. North Carolina&#39;s Marquise Williams played well in the final half of 2013. If he can pickup where he left off, expect the Tar Heels to finish near the top of the Coastal.</p><h3 class="athlon-large-title" style="font-family:tungsten-semibold;font-size:42px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;padding:0;"><br />College Football&#39;s Top 20 QBs on the Hot Seat for 2014<br />&nbsp;</h3><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Brandon Allen, Arkansas</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/arkansas-razorbacks.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />The SEC West is college football&rsquo;s toughest division, so a rebuilding Arkansas team will have trouble earning a win in conference play for the second year in a row. The Razorbacks&rsquo; backfield is among the best in the nation with Alex Collins, Jonathan Williams and Korliss Marshall leading the way. Allen started 2013 on a high note by completing 15 of 22 passes for 230 yards and three scores against UL Lafayette. However, Allen suffered a shoulder injury against Southern Miss and threw only eight touchdowns to nine interceptions over the final eight contests. In SEC play, Allen completed just 47.7 percent of his throws and only eight of his completions went for 30 yards or more. Arkansas&rsquo; receiving corps is still a work in progress, but sophomore tight end Hunter Henry is already among the best in the nation. With a potent ground attack and an emerging star at tight end, Allen&rsquo;s development is critical for a team that needs to upgrade its passing game to push for a bowl in 2014.</p><p><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Tommy Armstrong, Nebraska</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/nebraska-cornhuskers.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />With Wisconsin losing a few key pieces from last year&rsquo;s team, Nebraska and Iowa have a good chance to push for the division crown. The Cornhuskers do have their share of personnel concerns, including a rebuilt offensive line and secondary, but this team has talent at the skill positions with running back Ameer Abdullah and receiver Kenny Bell. Armstrong was thrown into the fire last year due to an injury to Taylor Martinez and performed well considering the circumstances. Armstrong finished 2013 with 966 passing yards and nine touchdowns and 202 yards on the ground. After learning on the job last season, Armstrong should be prepared for the week-to-week rigors of the Big Ten. And if the sophomore takes a step forward in his development, the Cornhuskers could emerge as the team to beat in the Big Ten&rsquo;s West Division &ndash; and quiet some of the pressure on Bo Pelini.&nbsp;<br /><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>David Ash, Texas</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Ash never had a chance to build off a promising 2012 season, as a concussion prematurely ended his 2013 campaign. In 2012, Ash completed 67.3 percent of his throws for 2,699 yards and 19 touchdowns. Talent is never a question mark at Texas, and Charlie Strong seems to be the right coach to develop elite recruiting classes into production. However, if the Longhorns want to challenge Baylor or Oklahoma in the Big 12, quarterback play has to improve. Ash&rsquo;s injury history is a concern, especially as there&rsquo;s little in the way of proven options on the depth chart, and Max Wittek did not graduate in time to transfer to Austin for 2014. The defense should improve under Strong&rsquo;s watch this season, and the backfield could be among the best in the nation. The Longhorns don&rsquo;t need a huge statistical season from Ash, but they definitely need him on the field for all 12 regular season games.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Jacoby Brissett, NC State</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/north-carolina-state-wolfpack.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />After five quarterbacks attempted a pass in a NC State uniform last season, second-year coach Dave Doeren is counting on Brissett to bring stability to the Wolfpack&rsquo;s offense in 2014. Brissett ranked as a four-star recruit by 247Sports in the 2011 signing class and threw for 455 yards and three touchdowns in two years in Gainesville. With Jeff Driskel entrenched as the starter, Brissett transferred to Raleigh for more playing time. The junior should be a good fit in coordinator Matt Canada&rsquo;s offense and will provide an immediate upgrade for the offense after NC State averaged only 221.6 passing yards per game in 2013. If Brissett struggles, it&rsquo;s back to the drawing board for Doeren, as true freshman Jalan McClendon is slated to be the No. 2 option.&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Brandon Connette, Fresno State</strong></span></h4><p><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/fresno-state-bulldogs.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Derek Carr leaves big shoes to fill in Fresno State, and the Bulldogs had three quarterbacks vying for the No. 1 spot in the spring. Brian Burrell and Zack Greenlee remain in the mix, with Myles Carr slated to move to receiver. Connette is eligible immediately after transferring from Duke and should have an impact for coach Tim DeRuyter. Connette&rsquo;s best season with the Blue Devils came in 2013, as he threw for 1,212 yards and 13 touchdowns and added 14 scores on the ground. It&rsquo;s never easy replacing someone like Carr, who exited his career as one of the top players in school history. Connette will be asked to throw it a little more than he was at Duke, but his experience should help to provide an easy transition to the starting lineup. If he picks up where he left off in Durham, Connette could lead Fresno State to another Mountain West title.</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;"><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Jeff Driskel, Florida</strong></span></h4><p><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/florida-gators.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Even though Driskel missed nearly all of last season due to injury, it&rsquo;s still hard to fathom why Florida&rsquo;s offense averaged only 312.5 yards and 19.9 points per game in SEC play. Change was necessary after a horrific year on offense, with coach Will Muschamp hiring Kurt Roper from Duke to call the plays in 2014. Roper&rsquo;s first priority is to help Driskel (a five-star recruit by 247Sports in 2011) reach his potential. Driskel has displayed promise at times, and his dual-threat ability is an asset for a team struggling to find the right pieces up front. However, Driskel has only one performance of more than 220 passing yards and tossed three picks through the first two games last season. It&rsquo;s unfair to blame Driskel for all of Florida&rsquo;s offensive woes, especially since the receiving corps is thin on proven options. If Driskel thrives under Roper, Florida can easily double its win total from 2013. But if Driskel struggles, the Gators will have to turn to true freshman Will Grier or sophomore Skyler Mornhinweg &ndash; a move that will likely ensure someone other than Muschamp is on the Florida sideline in 2015.<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Devin Gardner, Michigan</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-wolverines.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Gardner&rsquo;s first full year as Michigan&rsquo;s starter had its share of ups and downs, which included a late-season foot injury that pressed Shane Morris into starting duty against Kansas State in the bowl game. On the surface, Gardner wasn&rsquo;t bad last year. He threw for 2,960 yards and 21 touchdowns and rushed for 483 yards and 11 scores. Gardner also led the Big Ten (conference-only games) with 269.9 passing yards per game and did not toss a pick in his final four starts. While his overall numbers were solid, Gardner needs to be more consistent. He threw for 97 yards and tossed two picks against UConn, which came one week after throwing three picks against Akron. Gardner went just 13 of 28 against Iowa (98 yards) and threw for only 196 yards on 18 completions against Nebraska. Of course, it&rsquo;s unfair to blame Gardner for all of Michigan&rsquo;s problems, as the offensive line, rushing attack and receiving corps each had their share of question marks. If Gardner plays with more consistency, the Wolverines will have a chance to win 10 games. But if the supporting cast struggles, and Gardner is up and down once again, the pressure will start to build even more on coach Brady Hoke.&nbsp; &nbsp;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Hutson Mason, Georgia</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-bulldogs.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Why so much pressure on a first-year quarterback? Even though the Bulldogs are coming off an 8-5 record from 2013, this team has the pieces to be a factor for a spot in college football&rsquo;s new four-team playoff format. Georgia&rsquo;s offense will have a healthy Todd Gurley at running back, along with receiver Malcolm Mitchell at full strength after missing nearly all of last year with a torn ACL. With Gurley and Mitchell back in the mix, combined with the addition of Jeremy Pruitt as the team&rsquo;s defensive coordinator, the Bulldogs are poised to push for 10 wins. Of course, much of that depends on Mason. He showed plenty of progress in limited action last year, throwing for 320 yards in awful weather conditions against Nebraska and 299 yards in a victory against Georgia Tech. Georgia usually has no trouble developing solid quarterbacks. If Mason is as good as advertised this spring, the Bulldogs will be a factor in the mix for the SEC title.&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><strong><em>Listen to Athlon Sports Cover 2 Podcast: Quarterback Breakdown for 2014</em></strong></p><p><iframe allowfullscreen="" height="50" mozallowfullscreen="" msallowfullscreen="" oallowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/2895976/height/50/width/500/theme/standard/direction/no/autoplay/no/autonext/no/thumbnail/yes/preload/no/no_addthis/no/" style="border: none" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe>&nbsp;</p><p><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Cyler Miles, Washington</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/washington-huskies.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Chris Petersen&rsquo;s first spring in Seattle was somewhat eventful. Miles was suspended for the spring after an off-the-field incident, which allowed Jeff Lindquist and Troy Williams to get an early start on learning the new offense. Miles was reinstated earlier this summer and is expected to win the No. 1 job by the season opener. The sophomore was solid in his first taste of FBS action last year, completing 37 of 61 passes for 418 yards and four touchdowns. Most preseason predictions have Washington as the No. 3 team in the Pac-12 North behind Stanford and Oregon. With the Cardinal visiting Seattle in 2014, the opportunity is there for the Huskies to surprise. But that largely depends on how quickly Miles can pickup the new offense and how fast Petersen can find a replacement for running back Bishop Sankey.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Gary Nova, Rutgers</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/rutgers-scarlet-knights.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />The Scarlet Knights were a big winner in realignment by moving from the American Athletic Conference to the Big Ten, but it&rsquo;s not an easy transition for a program coming off a 6-7 record in 2013. The hire of Ralph Friedgen as offensive coordinator was one of the top assistant additions by any FBS team and should help the offense improve after managing only 23 points per game in conference play last season. Nova was benched late in 2013 and has tossed 30 interceptions over the last two seasons. There&rsquo;s not much in the way of proven options behind Nova for Friedgen, as Mike Bimonte and Chris Laviano have yet to complete a pass on the collegiate level. If Friedgen can help Nova limit his mistakes, Rutgers will have a chance to push for a bowl in its Big Ten debut. But if he struggles early in the year, Bimonte or Laviano will see plenty of playing time in 2014.<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Kevin Olsen, Miami</strong></span></p><p><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/miami-fl-hurricanes.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Miami&rsquo;s quarterback situation has already changed significantly since the start of spring practice. Ryan Williams was slated to replace Stephen Morris, but he suffered a torn ACL in the spring, and coach Al Golden added Kansas transfer Jake Heaps this summer. Olsen redshirted in his first season in Coral Gables last year and is on track to start the season opener at Louisville. Four-star recruit Brad Kaaya is set to join the battle this summer, and his development will be critical with Olsen&rsquo;s inexperience and Heaps learning the offense after joining the team in June.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Stephen Rivers, Vanderbilt</strong></span></p><p><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/vanderbilt-commodores.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />James Franklin set the bar high for new coach Derek Mason, and the first-year coach enters 2014 with a glaring question mark at quarterback. Mason hopes Rivers (a LSU transfer) is the answer under center, with redshirt freshman Johnny McCrary also pushing for time. Rivers has prototypical size for a quarterback (6-foot-7) and you may have heard of his brother (Philip) in NFL circles. Rivers played in only four games at LSU and misfired on both of his pass attempts. Making the junior&rsquo;s job even tougher in 2014 is Vanderbilt&rsquo;s receiving corps, which lost standout Jordan Matthews to the NFL. With a solid defense and rushing attack, Rivers won&rsquo;t have to post All-SEC numbers for the Commodores to return to the postseason. However, for a program coming off 18 wins in the last two years and the departure of the team&rsquo;s No. 1 player (Matthews), there&rsquo;s extra pressure on the quarterbacks to perform in 2014.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Joel Stave, Wisconsin</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/wisconsin-badgers.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />The Badgers will once again own one of the nation&rsquo;s top rushing attacks. Melvin Gordon and Corey Clement headline a backfield that is the best in the Big Ten and is capable of carrying Wisconsin to a Big Ten West Division title. While there are no concerns about the ground attack, coach Gary Andersen is hoping to jumpstart a passing attack that averaged only 201.9 yards per game in Big Ten games last season. Stave certainly wasn&rsquo;t awful last year, completing 208 passes for 2,494 yards and 22 touchdowns. However, the staff would like more from its passing attack and is intrigued by Tanner McEvoy, a former junior college recruit who spent some time at safety in 2013. Stave missed part of spring practice due to a shoulder injury, which opened the door for McEvoy to state his case for the No. 1 spot. The Badgers must replace several key players, but the schedule is favorable and there&rsquo;s a strong rushing attack to lean on. If Stave or McEvoy brings stability under center, Wisconsin can push for a final ranking among the top 10-15 teams in the nation.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Cole Stoudt, Clemson</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/clemson-tigers.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />After Florida State&rsquo;s Jameis Winston, there is very little in the way of proven options in the ACC at quarterback for 2014. Stoudt is a darkhorse candidate for all-conference honors this year, especially under the direction of coordinator Chad Morris. The senior won a three-way competition in the spring to claim the starting job, which included touted freshman Deshaun Watson. In three years at Clemson, Stoudt has completed 86 of 119 passes for 742 yards and eight scores. If Stoudt successfully replaces Tajh Boyd, the Tigers should be the No. 2 team in the ACC and have a chance to win 10 games. But if he struggles early, expect to hear the calls for Watson increase.<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Justin Thomas, Georgia Tech</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-tech-yellow-jackets.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />There&rsquo;s very little separation among the top-six teams in the Coastal Division, so the difference between No. 1 and No. 6 could be just a game or two in the final standings. Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson has recorded at least a .500 mark in ACC play in each of the last six years, but there&rsquo;s a lot of pressure on the coaching staff to produce after going 14-13 over the last two seasons. Vad Lee decided to transfer after last season, leaving Thomas as the clear No. 1 in Atlanta. Thomas is regarded as an excellent athlete and averaged 7.1 yards per carry in 2013. If Thomas runs Johnson&rsquo;s offense and limits the turnovers, the Yellow Jackets should be in the mix to win the Coastal. However, if he struggles in the starter role, Georgia Tech could have a new coaching staff in 2015.</p><p><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Dylan Thompson, South Carolina</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/south-carolina-gamecocks.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; border-width: 0px; border-style: solid; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Similar to Georgia&rsquo;s Hutson Mason, Thompson isn&rsquo;t in any danger of losing his starting job, but his play could be the difference in whether or not South Carolina wins the East. After throwing for 1,027 yards and 10 touchdowns in relief of Connor Shaw in 2012, Thompson wasn&rsquo;t as sharp in 2013. He posted a better completion percentage in 2013 (58.4 percent after 52.0 in 2012), but his interception total increased by one on fewer attempts, and Thompson left room for improvement in his performances against Missouri and UCF. Coach Steve Spurrier has already anointed Thompson as the starter, so there&rsquo;s little doubt about the depth chart. However, the Gamecocks hope a full offseason to work as the No. 1 quarterback helps Thompson produce like an All-SEC passer.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Clint Trickett, West Virginia</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/west-virginia-mountaineers.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />Considering West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen is known for his pass-first offenses, it seems odd for the Mountaineers to enter the season with so much uncertainty at quarterback. However, that&rsquo;s the scenario playing out in Morgantown this offseason, as none of the quarterbacks claimed the job in spring practice. West Virginia finished 2013 ranked No. 3 in the Big 12 (conference-only games) in passing offense, but the Mountaineers tossed 13 picks and threw just 12 touchdowns in nine league games. Trickett led the team with 1,605 yards and seven touchdown passes last season but was forced to miss spring workouts due to shoulder surgery. With West Virginia facing a tough non-conference schedule (Alabama and Maryland), and the pressure to rebound after a 4-8 mark in 2013, the Mountaineers need Trickett to be the answer under center. If he isn&rsquo;t, junior college recruit Skyler Howard or Paul Millard will move into the starting lineup. True freshman William Crest is a wildcard to watch.&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Bo Wallace, Ole Miss</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/mississippi-rebels.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />With the personnel losses at LSU and Texas A&amp;M, Ole Miss has a chance to make some noise in the SEC West. The Rebels have made steady improvement under coach Hugh Freeze and a healthy year from Wallace should make a difference. After offseason shoulder surgery, Wallace watched his touchdown total dip from 22 in 2012 to 18 last season, while he averaged just 11.8 yards per completion in 2013. Quarterbacks that have shoulder surgery seem to need a full year before returning to 100 percent. If Wallace builds off his progress from the last two seasons and stays healthy, the Rebels could push for nine wins in 2014.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Marquise Williams, North Carolina</strong></span><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/north-carolina-tar-heels.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; margin: 3px; float: right;" />With victories in six out of their last seven games, North Carolina has momentum on its side in 2014. And there are many reasons to be optimistic about the offense, as coach Larry Fedora has recruited a wealth of talent at the skill positions, and Williams showed promise in a limited stint as the team&rsquo;s starting quarterback last year. The Charlotte native is a good fit for Fedora&rsquo;s offense, and his dual-threat ability is a valuable asset for a team with a rebuilding offensive line. The junior finished 2013 with 1,698 yards and 15 scores, but he was pushed for snaps in the spring by redshirt freshman Mitch Trubisky. Williams is already feeling pressure on the depth chart to perform to hold onto his No. 1 spot. However, there&rsquo;s added demands on Williams with North Carolina in position to win the Coastal. The good news for the Tar Heels: It seems like there are two quarterbacks Fedora feels comfortable with. The bad news: If Williams struggles, the quarterback battle will begin once again with Trubisky ready to claim the starting job.&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:24px;"><strong>Justin Worley, Tennessee</strong></span></p><p><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/tennessee-volunteers.png" style="width: 100px; height: 100px; float: right; margin: 3px;" />Butch Jones enters his second season at Tennessee with a myriad of question marks, none bigger than who starts at quarterback for the opener against Utah State. The Volunteers finished spring with three quarterbacks fighting for snaps, but Riley Ferguson transferred, leaving Worley and Joshua Dobbs vying for the No. 1 spot. Worley started seven games in 2013 and threw for 10 touchdowns and 1,239 yards in 2013. However, a thumb injury ended his season in late October. With a challenging schedule ahead in 2014, finding a quarterback could be the difference in Tennessee making a bowl or missing the postseason for the fourth consecutive season.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/acc">ACC</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-ten">Big Ten</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/mountain-west">Mountain West</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/pac-12-0">Pac 12</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/sec">SEC</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/michigan-wolverines">Michigan Wolverines</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-previous-article field-type-entityreference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Previous Article:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">College Football&#039;s Best Head Coach-Quarterback Tandems for 2014</div></div></div>Tue, 24 Jun 2014 11:15:00 +0000Steven Lassan67500 at http://athlonsports.com10 Reasons Why Nick Saban Will Be the Next Coach at Texashttp://athlonsports.com/college-football/10-reasons-why-nick-saban-will-be-next-coach-texas
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Nick Saban will go from Crimson Tide to Burnt Orange in 2014.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p>Alabama coach Nick Saban will be the next coach of the Texas Longhorns. Current UT coach Mack Brown has one foot out the door. Saban&#39;s agent, Jimmy Sexton, is already jockeying for position, eyeing a Lone Star State payday. Sorry, Alabama fans. It was a good run. But Saban is moving from Tuscaloosa to Austin in 2014. These are the 10 reasons why Nick Saban will be the next coach at Texas:<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>1. &quot;Special pressure&quot; at Alabama</strong></span><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/13244-1/NickSaban_003.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 327px; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid; margin: 5px; float: right;" /><br />Alabama is spoiled. Three BCS national championships in four seasons will do that. The student section takes their red Solo cups to Sorority and Fraternity Rows long before games are over. Saban is under the type of &quot;special pressure&quot; where anything less than an undefeated season and BCS national title is considered a failure.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>2. To be better than Bear</strong></span><br />Despite a 77&ndash;13 record at Bama and three BCS title crystals, Saban will never be considered better than Bear Bryant as long as he is coaching the Crimson Tide. Saban will always be second-best while he&#39;s coaching in a Houndstooth shadow. But were Saban to go to Texas &mdash; and win it all &mdash; he would have national titles at LSU, Alabama and Texas. Saban would be&hellip; however sacrilegious it is&hellip; better than the Bear.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>3. More money</strong></span><br />&quot;How much money does he need?&quot; is the type of thing said by someone other than Saban. Texas has an endowment of $6 billion. Alabama has an endowment of $630 million. Saban wants to be the biggest and the best? Everything is bigger in Texas.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>4. Longhorn Network</strong></span><br />ESPN has partnered with Texas for the Longhorn Network, which has yet to establish itself. But imagine the possibilities? Saban could potentially have the Worldwide Leader of propaganda machines at his disposal. As if he needed any additional help rebuilding the burnt orange football factory in Austin.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>5. Independence?</strong></span><br />The Republic of Texas may never secede from the Union, but the University of Texas could realistically secede from the Big 12 &mdash; a conference it nearly killed following the announcement of its Longhorn Network. Missouri and Texas A&amp;M took their balls to the SEC. While the Pac-12, Big Ten and SEC have grown stronger in numbers, the Big 12 has fallen behind. Texas could become the Notre Dame of the South.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>6. No conference title game</strong></span><br />Short of total independence, Texas still has an edge over any SEC team in that the Longhorns avoid a conference title game. Why play a pesky SEC East team when you can roll out the red carpet directly to the Final Four of the BCS? Less chance of injury, less chance of fluke loss, less chance period.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>7. AJ McCarron is graduating</strong></span><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/31657-1/AJMcCarron3001.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 327px; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid; margin: 5px; float: right;" /><br />Sure there are other quarterbacks. Brent Musberger told all the boys out there to go pitch the ball around in the backyard because quarterbacks get all the good looking women. But those other signal-callers aren&#39;t Mr. McCarron, who has a 34&ndash;2 record, 65 TDs and 11 INTs (through nine games in 2013) in nearly three seasons as a starter. After this season, Saban will have to build a new relationship with a new starting QB &mdash; whether he&#39;s at Bama or Texas.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>8. To be his own boss (almost)</strong></span><br />No matter where Saban goes, the Nick-tator will be his own man. No one speaks to the coach unless directly spoken to. Don&#39;t even look at Coach Saban if you pass him in the halls. That will be the rule wherever he goes. But at Texas, Saban will be working under a brand new athletic director in Steve Patterson.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>9. Tired of &quot;Sweet Home Alabama&quot;</strong></span><br />How many times can you hear &quot;Sweet Home Alabama,&quot; Roll! Tide! Roll!? Sometimes you can just see Saban seething for apparently no reason, up 40 points but fuming. What other reason could there be? He&#39;s sick of that song and that chant. It will take years before the Texas Exes and their Hook &#39;Em Horns gets under Saban&#39;s skin.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:16px;"><strong>10. Better oatmeal pies</strong></span><br />Coach Saban&#39;s breakfast of choice is the oatmeal cream pie. The Texas State Fair would runneth over with oatmeal cream pies if Saban was wearing burnt orange on the sidelines.<br />&nbsp;</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/sec">SEC</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/alabama-crimson-tide">Alabama Crimson Tide</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-50 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Players:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/nick-saban">Nick Saban</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/mack-brown">Mack Brown</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/jimmy-sexton">Jimmy Sexton</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/steve-patterson">Steve Patterson</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div>Mon, 11 Nov 2013 16:18:42 +0000Nathan Rush30652 at http://athlonsports.comAP Poll: Where BCS Champions Rank in the Preseasonhttp://athlonsports.com/college-football/ap-poll-where-bcs-champions-rank-preseason
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Where have the BCS National Champions been ranked in the preseason and what does it mean for 2013?</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p>When we sit down to iron out our <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25" style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;" target="_blank">Top 25 Poll</a><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"> each year at Athlon Sports, we are trying to project the final year-end standings not build a preseason power poll. It might be a small and subtle difference but an important one to acknowledge.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">We don&#39;t necessarily think Louisville or Boise State is the 9th- or 11th-best team in the nation as they sit in our rankings, but rather, they will finish 9th and 11th in the final polls of the year. Frankly, I would take LSU in a best of anything series against either team but the Tigers&#39; schedule is much more difficult and will likely result in more losses and therefore a lower postseason ranking. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">Makes sense, right?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">In 2013, Athlon has predicted the <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/alabama-2013-preview-predictions" target="_blank">Alabama Crimson Tide</a> will topple the <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/ohio-state-2013-preview-predictions" target="_blank">Ohio State Buckeyes</a> in the final BCS National Championship Game. Thus, &#39;Bama and OSU are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in our preseason magazine. </span><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">B</span><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">ut when trying to pick your national title winner &mdash; or pinpoint those capable of making a historic run &mdash; there are a few figures to consider.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">The 2013 Preseason AP Poll is set to debut for the first time this weekend. Preseason rankings may seem arbitrary to some, in fact, many believe strongly that polls shouldn&#39;t exist until later in the year. But every one of the 15 BCS National Champions has been ranked in the preseason AP Top 25 and it has been 29 years since a team came from outside of the AP preseason Top 25 to win the AP National Championship (a controversial BYU title in 1984).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">So here are some seriously intriguing factoids to consider:</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14px;"><strong><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/23238-1/Dyer332.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 186px; float: right; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid; margin: 3px; " /><span style="font-size:18px;">Be Ranked In the Preseason Top 20</span></strong></span><br />Only one team ranked outside of the AP Top 20 has ever won a BCS National Championship. The <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/auburn-2012" target="_blank">Auburn Tigers</a> of 2010, behind junior college transfer and relative unknown commodity Cam Newton, began the year ranked No. 22 in the nation. The Tigers are the lowest ranked preseason team in the BCS era to win the title and are the first team outside of the top 20 since 1990 to even clinch a share of the title. Additionally, <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/oregon-ducks-2012" target="_blank">Oregon</a> began 2010 outside of the top 10 at No. 11 &mdash; making that BCS National Championship game the only national title contest in the last 30+ years to feature two teams that began outside of the top 10 in the preseason polls. Notre Dame last year is the only team during the BCS era to even make it to the BCS title game without being ranked in the preseason AP Top 25.</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Really Though, Be Ranked In The Top 10</strong></span><br />Only four times in 15 years has the national champ come from outside the preseason Top 10. In addition to Auburn, <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/oklahoma-sooners-2012" target="_blank">Oklahoma</a> in 2000 was ranked 19th, LSU in &#39;03 was ranked 15th and <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/ohio-state-buckeyes-2012" target="_blank">Ohio State</a> was ranked 13th. Only three additional teams since 1984 &mdash; Notre Dame in 1988 (13th), Michigan in &#39;97 (14th) and <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/georgia-tech-2012" target="_blank">Georgia Tech</a> in &#39;90 (UR) &mdash; have won the national title starting outside of the top 10. And Tech didn&rsquo;t claim the AP title.</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>The Top 5 Is the Place To Be</strong></span><br />Five of the last six national champions were ranked in the top five in the AP preseason poll. <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/alabama-crimson-tide-2012" target="_blank">Alabama</a> in 2009 and <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/florida-2012" target="_blank">Florida</a> in &#39;08 each started the season at No. 5 &mdash; although, it should be noted that Athlon Sports had the Gators No. 1 in &#39;08 &mdash; while LSU in &#39;07 and both of Alabama&#39;s most recent crystal footballs were claimed by teams that were ranked second. <span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">In fact, 17 championship teams </span><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">(including split titles)</span><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"> in the last 24 seasons began the year ranked in the top five. This means, according to Athlon Sports&rsquo; rankings, that there is a better than 70 percent chance that either Alabama, Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia or South Carolina will win the final BCS championship this year. It also means there is less than a 30 percent chance that the champion comes from the other 120 teams. Sorry, Texas A&amp;M, Louisville, LSU and everyone else.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>No. 1 Is Just... Okay</strong></span><br />So where is No. 1 in all of this you ask? Nowhere to be found, at least, not in the last decade. The USC Trojans in 2004 were the last AP preseason No. 1 team to claim the national championship. On top of that, <span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">the preseason No. 1 team in the AP poll hasn&#39;t even played in the national title game since 2006 when Ohio State lost to Florida. In fact, since 1982, only three preseason No. 1 teams have gone on to win the title.</span> <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/florida-state-seminoles-2012" style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;" target="_blank">Florida State</a><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"> in 1993 and &#39;99 were the only other teams to match the &rsquo;04 Trojans&#39; wire-to-wire dominance. Additionally, more teams have lost the national title game as preseason No. 1&#39;s than have won it during the BCS era. Yes, six trips (of 15) to the BCS title game is a respectable prediction rate &mdash; and obviously most fan bases would take a guaranteed trip to the title game &mdash; but more times than not that team loses. The AP preseason No. 1 team is 2-4 in the big game.</span></p><p><strong>Related:&nbsp;<a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-10-darkhorse-national-title-contenders" style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Potential Darkhorse National Championship Sleepers</a></strong><br /><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/28844-1/AJMcCarron332.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 186px; float: right; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid; margin: 3px; " /></p><p><strong style="font-size: 14.44444465637207px;"><span style="font-size:18px;">So where is the best spot to be?</span></strong><br />No. 2 is where you want to be when the preseason AP Poll comes out. Five of the last 13 national champions began the season ranked No. 2 in the preseason, more than any other preseason ranking by a wide margin. Alabama in 2011-12, LSU in &#39;07, Texas in &#39;05 and Miami in &#39;01 all won the crown beginning from the second starting spot. The preseason No. 2 team has played in the BCS National Championship Game nine times, more than any other slot. Of the 30 total BCS title game teams, 30 percent have started the season as the No. 2 team in the AP poll. The next highest spot is No. 1 with six appearances, and that position is tied with the AP preseason No. 5 team with just two BCS wins.</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Where Not To Be?</strong></span><br />The preseason number you don&rsquo;t want your team to be? Third or fourth to start. No team in the BCS era has won a title beginning the year ranked No. 3 or No. 4 &mdash; despite No. 4 making three appearances in the BCS Championship Game (0-3). Florida in 1996 was the last preseason No. 4 team to claim the title and Miami in &#39;91 was the last team ranked No. 3 in the preseason to win the big prize. So for Athlon&#39;s ranking, this presumably knocks out Oregon (No. 3) and Georgia (No. 4).&nbsp;<span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">During the BCS era, teams ranked preseason No. 3, No. 6, No. 8 and No. 9 have never even played in the BCS National Championship game much less won it &mdash; although, USC won the AP title in 2003 ranked No. 8 in the preseason. The No</span><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">. 6-ranked team hasn&#39;t won a title since 1997 (Nebraska) and No. 9 hasn&#39;t clinched the championship since &#39;92 (Alabama). For good measure, No. 11 hasn&#39;t won a title in the last 33 seasons.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">What do all these numbers mean for college football in 2013? Maybe nothing, maybe everything. But the stats do indicate that preseason polls are extremely accurate measuring sticks when attempting to pinpoint the quest for the coveted crystal football. So buy your Athlon Sports College Football preview magazine </span><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.shop.athlonsports.com" style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;">!</span></p><p><em>Here is a quick list of how each of the national champs have ranked in the preseason:</em></p><table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 450px; "><tbody><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>Year</strong></span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>Team</strong></span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>AP Rank</strong></span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>BCS Runner-Up</strong></span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>AP Rank</strong></span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2012</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Alabama</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Notre Dame</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">UR (No. 26)</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2011</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Alabama</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">LSU</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 4</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2010</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Auburn</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 22</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Oregon</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 11</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2009</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Alabama</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 5</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Texas</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2008</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 5</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Oklahoma</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 4</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2007</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">LSU</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Ohio State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 10</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2006</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 7</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Ohio State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2005</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Texas</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">USC</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2004</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">USC</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Oklahoma</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2003*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">LSU</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 15</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Oklahoma</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2003*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">USC (AP)</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 8</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2002</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Ohio State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 13</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Miami</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2001</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Miami</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Nebraska</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 4</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">2000</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Oklahoma</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 19</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1999</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Virginia Tech</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 11</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1998</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Tennessee</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 10</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1997*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Michigan (AP)</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 14</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1997*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Nebraska</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 6</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1996</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 4</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1995</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Nebraska</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1994</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Nebraska</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 4</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1993</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Florida State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 1</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1992</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Alabama</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 9</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1991*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Miami (AP)</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 3</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1991*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Washington</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 4</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1990*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Colorado (AP)</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 5</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1990*</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Georgia Tech</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Unranked</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1989</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Miami</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 3</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1988</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Notre Dame</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 13</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1987</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Miami</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 10</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1986</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Penn State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 6</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1985</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Oklahoma</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 2</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1984</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">BYU</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Unranked</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1983</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Miami</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Unranked</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr><tr><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">1982</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">Penn State</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">No. 8</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td><td class="rtecenter"><span style="font-size:12px;">--</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><script>!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");</script></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/acc">ACC</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/american-athletic">American Athletic</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-ten">Big Ten</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/pac-12-0">Pac 12</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/sec">SEC</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/alabama-crimson-tide">Alabama Crimson Tide</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/auburn-tigers">Auburn Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/boise-state-broncos">Boise State Broncos</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/clemson-tigers">Clemson Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-gators">Florida Gators</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-state-seminoles">Florida State Seminoles</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/georgia-bulldogs">Georgia Bulldogs</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/louisville-cardinals">Louisville Cardinals</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/lsu-tigers">LSU Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/miami-hurricanes">Miami Hurricanes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/michigan-wolverines">Michigan Wolverines</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/nebraska-cornhuskers">Nebraska Cornhuskers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/north-carolina-tar-heels">North Carolina Tar Heels</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/notre-dame-fighting-irish">Notre Dame Fighting Irish</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ohio-state-buckeyes">Ohio State Buckeyes</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-state-cowboys">Oklahoma State Cowboys</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oregon-ducks">Oregon Ducks</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/penn-state-nittany-lions">Penn State Nittany Lions</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/south-carolina-gamecocks">South Carolina Gamecocks</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/stanford-cardinal">Stanford Cardinal</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/tennessee-volunteers">Tennessee Volunteers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-am-aggies">Texas A&amp;M Aggies</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ucla-bruins">UCLA Bruins</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/usc-trojans">USC Trojans</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/virginia-tech-hokies">Virginia Tech Hokies</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/washington-huskies">Washington Huskies</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/wisconsin-badgers">Wisconsin Badgers</a></div></div></div>Fri, 16 Aug 2013 14:30:18 +0000Braden Gall25776 at http://athlonsports.comThe Top 100 College Football Players of the BCS Erahttp://athlonsports.com/college-football/top-100-college-football-players-bcs-era
<div class="field field-name-field-subtitle field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Subtitle:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Who are the best players to play during the BCS era?</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-next-article field-type-entityreference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Next Article:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">College Football&#039;s Best and Worst Logos</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-related-articles field-type-node-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Related Articles:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-linebackers-bcs-era">College Football&#039;s Top 50 Linebackers of the BCS Era</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-offensive-linemen-bcs-era">College Football&#039;s Top 50 Offensive Linemen of the BCS Era</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-defensive-backs-bcs-era">College Football&#039;s Top 50 Defensive Backs of the BCS Era</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/college-football/40-favorite-college-football-cheerleaders-2013">40 Favorite College Football Cheerleaders of 2013 </a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-homepage-featured-image field-type-image field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Horizontal Image:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/athlonsports.com/files/Top100DL.jpg" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">What We&#039;re Reading:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-whatreading-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-whatreading-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-link1-exclude field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-link2-exclude field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-link3-exclude field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-link4-exclude field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-link5-exclude field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-whatreading-link6-exclude field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-vertical-image field-type-image field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Vertical Image:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/athlonsports.com/files/WilliamsRicky400.jpg" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-feautred-image field-type-image field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Square Image:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/athlonsports.com/files/Top100DL_0.jpg" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-display-section field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Display Section:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/section/college-football">College Football</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-44 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Section:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/section/college-football">College Football</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/acc">ACC</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-ten">Big Ten</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/pac-12-0">Pac 12</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/sec">SEC</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/alabama-crimson-tide">Alabama Crimson Tide</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-gators">Florida Gators</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/miami-hurricanes">Miami Hurricanes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/auburn-tigers">Auburn Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/nebraska-cornhuskers">Nebraska Cornhuskers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/wisconsin-badgers">Wisconsin Badgers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/lsu-tigers">LSU Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-state-seminoles">Florida State Seminoles</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/penn-state-nittany-lions">Penn State Nittany Lions</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ohio-state-buckeyes">Ohio State Buckeyes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/usc-trojans">USC Trojans</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div>Thu, 15 Aug 2013 11:20:00 +0000Braden Gall25478 at http://athlonsports.comBig 12 Coaches Talk Anonymously About Conference Foes for 2013http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-coaches-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2013
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Big 12 Coaches Talk Anonymously About Conference Foes for 2013</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p><span style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; ">It&#39;s not easy getting&nbsp;</span><strong style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; "><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football" style="font-size: 13px; " target="_blank">college football</a></strong><span style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; ">&nbsp;coaches to honestly comment on another coach, player or team. Most coaches don&#39;t want to give opposing teams billboard material, which is why there is a lot of coach speak or overused cliches used during the year. In order to get an accurate assessment of teams heading into 2013, Athlon asked coaches in the <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/conference/big-12" target="_blank"><b>Big 12</b></a></span><span style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; ">&nbsp;to talk anonymously about their opponents.</span></p><p style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; "><span style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; "><em style="font-size: 13px; ">Note: These scouting reports come directly from the coaching staff and do not necessarily reflect the views of Athlon&#39;s editorial staff.</em></span></p><p style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; "><strong style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 20px; ">Big 12 Coaches Anonymously Scout Their Conference Foes for 2013</strong></p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Baylor</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Bears:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/baylor-bears.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;The biggest secret is the offensive line. It&rsquo;s just flat-out really good &mdash;&nbsp; tenacious, good run-blockers, pass-blockers. But it goes unnoticed because of the skill guys who get good numbers and have publicity. Tevin Reese at receiver is an unbelievable weapon. Big home run guy. Lache Seastrunk is great, but they had other guys who could run the ball, too.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;The quarterback, Bryce Petty, is a big kid who runs well, throws well. He&rsquo;s a strong weight room guy who runs decently and has an above-average arm.&quot; &hellip;&nbsp;<br /><br />&quot;They are really talented on offense, top to bottom.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;The defense gave up a bunch of yards but played really well at the end of the season. They got better as the year went on.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;No question they made a big statement beating Kansas State and UCLA. They just punished them. That offensive lineman, seems like he&rsquo;s been there forever, Cyril Richardson, he&rsquo;s a great player. The tight end, they don&rsquo;t use him much, Jordan Najvar, but he&rsquo;s solid. They have a stable of running backs. Seastrunk might be one of the most talented in the country. I know he proclaimed himself a Heisman guy, and we&rsquo;ll see about that, but he&rsquo;s one of the best we have in the league.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;You have to stop a team like that on third down. Absolutely need three-and-outs, because otherwise they will wear on you because they are home run hitters. Really fast at receiver.&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Iowa State</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Cyclones:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/iowa-state-cyclones.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;It will be interesting to see how the quarterback situation plays out. They had three of them, one transferred &mdash; the younger kid (Jared Barnett). They lost some production at receiver. They have three starting offensive linemen that return.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They are a good, pretty much average offensive line. But they can move the ball, and they have experience running the ball.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;(Running back) Jeff Woody didn&rsquo;t play for them much. We thought he was a load. Not sure why he didn&rsquo;t play more. I&rsquo;m not sure if he&rsquo;s in the doghouse or injured. Not really sure there. Good running back, though.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Their talent level is middle of the pack, to be honest about it. One of the things last year is they had very athletic quarterbacks, Steele Jantz and Barnett &mdash; they were real athletic. But halfway through the season, they went with the other guy, Sam Richardson, for more consistency. I guess he&rsquo;s the guy. Might be more of a consistent thrower than the others.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;On defense, they will take a little bit of a hit after losing their best linebackers (A.J. Klein and Jake Knott). They were tough at linebacker.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;A defensive tackle that was a huge guy, Jake McDonough, they&rsquo;ll miss him. He was a good player. But the linebackers carried them. They knew how to play and were tough.&quot; &hellip;&nbsp;<br /><br />&quot;The wide receiver position can be a question mark for them. They don&rsquo;t have a lot of talented experience there. The strength is in the running backs.&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Kansas State</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Wildcats:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/kansas-state-wildcats.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;They are losing a lot &mdash; almost everyone from the front seven, I believe &mdash; but they&rsquo;ll be insane again, don&rsquo;t worry. They&rsquo;ll reload somehow. No team garners more respect within the conference by the way they prepare than K-State.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Funny enough, I actually thought their backup quarterback (Daniel Sams) was better than Collin Klein. At least I thought he was a better athlete, which is what they need with that run-heavy offense.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Just from what I saw, listening to (our) defensive coaches, that backup (Sams) will surprise next year. I think they have a juco quarterback, Jake Waters, who will compete. But it seems like it&rsquo;s Sams&rsquo; job to lose.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Certainly they will miss Klein&rsquo;s leadership and toughness. Those will be wild cards with the new guy. They&rsquo;ll create a good atmosphere for quarterback competition in practices.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;In typical Bill Snyder fashion, Kansas State will be disciplined, they&rsquo;ll line up correctly, play their asses off, be in the right spots, and be coached really well.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Snyder does nothing fancy. Everything about the team is old school. &hellip; They&rsquo;ll still be a team that competes. They are all the same guy, basically. They are robots.&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Kansas</strong></span><br /><em><span style="font-size:14px;"><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Jayhawks:</strong></span></em><br /><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/kansas-jayhawks.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;This is probably the worst team in the conference. They just don&rsquo;t have the talent.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;I thought the running back, James Sims, was pretty good. He&rsquo;ll be back. He&rsquo;s pretty versatile, can go inside and out a little bit.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Kansas came out with a new mentality every single week. They&rsquo;d come out with a new formation and just be in that formation the entire game. We showed our kids every single look, formations and stuff, and Kansas just came out and ran the triple-option all game. We called it the flavor of the week. We told our guys to just be sound and play hard and you shouldn&rsquo;t have much of a problem.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;That&rsquo;s just a tough job right now. Charlie (Weis) is in a tough spot. They do have money there, and of course the basketball presence, which helps. I just don&rsquo;t see them being very successful long term. The talent is different. Maybe that&rsquo;s smart to go heavy on jucos, which Charlie seemed to do in recruiting this year, because that might be the only way to find the right players. But then you&rsquo;re competing with Kansas State for recruits, and Kansas State has had a lot of success with that same formula.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;The quarterback situation should be interesting, though, because I think Weis is pretty high on Jake Heaps. Dayne Crist just wasn&rsquo;t what they had hoped for at all. They couldn&rsquo;t get anything going with him. Heaps gives them a chance, but who does he throw to? They don&rsquo;t have the receiver talent.&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Oklahoma</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Sooners:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/oklahoma-sooners.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think they are as talented up front on defense as Texas is, but I thought their back end was better. I thought they had good cover guys. The Aaron Colvin kid, he&rsquo;s a good cover guy.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;I thought they would give us a lot more problems than they did. Up front, I didn&rsquo;t think they had the Oklahoma guys of the past &mdash; guys like Gerald McCoy and Tommie Harris and all of that. They just don&rsquo;t have those guys anymore. They used to have some animals up front.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Honestly, I know (quarterback) Landry Jones took some heat at times, but I think they&rsquo;ll miss him. It&rsquo;s tough to replace a guy who started that many years. It helped that he could adjust to personnel. And he had some big moments.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;(Quarterback) Blake Bell is an effective goal line guy but not sure how he&rsquo;ll do as the primary option. He might do great, but the jury&rsquo;s still out.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They&rsquo;ll rebound somehow. They kicked all those receivers out (of school), but they go out and still get good players. I know as far as receivers, they have decent players, but no one really stood out.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;What makes Oklahoma go is quick lining up on that offensive line. They&rsquo;ve had some injuries there but should be able to do what they want.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;A switch to (multiple defensive fronts) will help. It&rsquo;s all spread teams you&rsquo;re facing. You&rsquo;re going to have to get into situations where you can drop eight guys, rush a lot of guys at the same time. It&rsquo;s easier to rush three and drop eight. &rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Oklahoma State</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Cowboys:&ensp;</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/oklahoma-state-cowboys.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know anything about the new offensive coordinator, the guy from D-2 (Mike Yurcich). He&rsquo;s replacing Todd Monken, who&rsquo;s a sharp guy, (but head coach) Mike Gundy knows what he&rsquo;s looking for with that offense. They&rsquo;ve perfected what they are doing over there, so they should be fine.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They always have a lot of talent on the offensive side. It&rsquo;s the same M.O. with them &mdash; pretty good offensively, average defensively. The kids will play hard and try to create a lot of turnovers, which helps them.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They will still be a 4-3 defense, a cover-4.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;I think if they can find what they want to do offensively and go ahead and establish the quarterback situation, they&rsquo;ll be better off.&quot;&hellip;<br /><br />&quot;That O-line is solid. If they have five offensive linemen, and you&rsquo;re blitzing six, you better pick up all six &mdash; that&rsquo;s their coaching mentality. No excuses.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;I think they&rsquo;ll be one of the better teams in the Big 12. I just don&rsquo;t know much about their offense as a whole. They could rely on the passing game more than ever after losing Joseph Randle. He was easily one of the best running backs in the league.&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>TCU</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Horned Frogs:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30748-2/TCU.jpg" style="width: 85px; height: 41px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;How good is (quarterback) Casey Pachall? Very talented. Good athlete. Good thrower. Helluva competitor. The competitor part, he&rsquo;s kind of like Collin Klein, who&rsquo;s not fastest in the world, not a great thrower, but a helluva competitor. Loves to play. Pachall is similar. I think TCU is welcoming him back with open arms. With the stuff he&rsquo;s been through, you will find out a lot about him. If football is as important to him as he says, they are getting a heckuva player, and he&rsquo;ll last. If that&rsquo;s not true, then they&rsquo;ll know pretty soon. If he&rsquo;s truly out of the doghouse, he&rsquo;s as good as anybody in our conference.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They played with some young offensive linemen a year ago &mdash; some true freshmen, I think &mdash; so they will be even better.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Josh Boyce was one of the most underrated receivers in the Big 12.&nbsp; I really thought he was talented and versatile. They will miss him.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They are deep on defense. They are good at every position. They have corners who play man coverage. They can get a pass rush on a quarterback with a four-man rush. They&rsquo;ll miss (end) Stansly Maponga, but overall they should be fine. The linebackers are solid. Very solid football team all the way around.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;That youth on offense hurt them at times. &hellip;&nbsp; They did a great job recruiting defensive linemen, so they can run them in and out.&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Texas</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Longhorns:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think they play up to the level of players that they&rsquo;ve got. It&rsquo;s as simple as that. They had a couple of really good players we thought would give us a lot of problems, but we moved the ball really well on them. They just aren&rsquo;t the Texas Longhorns they were in the past.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;No doubt, Texas and Oklahoma still are the top-two most talented teams in the conference. They just are.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Last year, teams could have their best offensive game of the year against Texas or Oklahoma. It shouldn&rsquo;t be that way.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;I think (quarterback) David Ash is average. He&rsquo;s a true under-center type guy. I actually thought Case McCoy threw the ball better. But the coaching staff is around him more, so they must be confident in Ash that he can be the guy long term.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;(Former offensive coordinator) Bryan Harsin is a smart guy. He&rsquo;ll be missed now that he&rsquo;s at Arkansas State.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They are very talented up front (on defense). Their two defensive ends are very, very good. The nose guard was really good as well. Their backers are big, pretty looking guys, but I didn&rsquo;t think they could move in space as much. That was part of the problem. Because of that, the tackling was suspect because nobody was in the right position. In the Big 12, you need to have backers that can move in space because offenses are all spread out. The safety, Kenny Vaccaro, was the best guy we faced, hands down.&rdquo;<br /><br /><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>Texas Tech</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14px;"><em><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Red Raiders:</strong></em></span><br /><br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-tech-red-raiders.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;Obviously they lose the quarterback, Seth Doege, which is big. He wasn&rsquo;t an NFL player, but he knew the offense very well, knew where to go with the ball.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They have a lot of excitement with the new coaching staff coming in. They have good receivers, a big offensive line, and they are really improved on defense from a few years ago. Not sure which guys are returning, but they improved a year ago as much as anyone. It will be interesting to see if they can build on that.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Offensively, they&rsquo;ll always put up great numbers. With Kliff Kingsbury, it will be up-tempo, wide open and as fast as you can go. They&rsquo;ll go up and down the field on people. They still have the guys to do that, but the quarterback is the question mark. Not sure who it will be.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Maybe that transition will be easy. The (quarterback) they had last year was a very heady player. I think you can win there consistently. They do a good job recruiting in the state. When Mike Leach was there, they won a lot.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;The big tight end was hurt for them for about half of last season, Jace Amaro. He&rsquo;s a big guy, and they flexed him out. His numbers don&rsquo;t look that good, but we thought the world of him.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Running backs are middle of the pack, probably. Nothing like (Oklahoma State&rsquo;s) Joseph Randle, who I thought was one of the best backs in the league. &hellip; They were very improved in pass rush and on the defensive line.&rdquo;<br /><br /><span style="font-size:18px;"><strong>West Virginia</strong></span></p><p><em><span style="font-size:14px;"><strong>Opposing coaches size up the Mountaineers:</strong></span></em><br />&ensp;<br /><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/west-virginia-mountaineers.png" style="width: 85px; height: 85px; margin: 3px; float: right; " />&ldquo;They&rsquo;ll be down.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Junior college receiver Kevin White, I think he can be a star for them. They also have a few good freshman receivers who are talented and will probably play a lot and help out. But just think about the production they lose with Tavon Austin, Stedman Bailey, Geno Smith, J.D. Woods &mdash; they lost about 95 percent of their production. Only real production coming back is (running back) Andrew Buie. Dreamius Smith, a running back from junior college, he&rsquo;ll probably start for them.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;They are going to be really good up front. The tackles are experienced. They look the part.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;Safety Karl Joseph is their best player on defense, where they are still trying to find enough bodies. They&rsquo;ll try to get more talent and stay in the 3-4. They didn&rsquo;t have everyone on the same page. I would expect them to get better. They can&rsquo;t get much worse. They weren&rsquo;t mentally ready to be in shootouts every week. It was like, &lsquo;Oh God, here we go again.&rsquo; They kind of folded at times.&quot; &hellip;<br /><br />&quot;The quarterbacks can spin it. They won&rsquo;t run the ball. Paul Millard has the gunslinger mentality. He&rsquo;ll probably be the guy because of experience. He&rsquo;s got the locker room. They won&rsquo;t announce that until the fall. They are very equal right now between Millard and (Ford) Childress. They&rsquo;ll go for easy completions to get the young players going. One may step up, but I don&rsquo;t see the same playmakers they had.&rdquo;<br /><br /><strong style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; ">Related College Football Content<br /><br /><strong style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; "><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://beta.athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2013-predictions" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">Big 12 Predictions for 2013</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/college-football-bowl-projections-2013" target="_blank">Bowl Projections for 2013</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://beta.athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2013-all-conference-team" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">Big 12 2013 All-Conference Team</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/oklahoma-football-game-game-predictions-2013" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">Oklahoma Game-by-Game Predictions for 2013</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/oklahoma-state-football-game-game-predictions-2013" target="_blank">Oklahoma State Game-by-Game Predictions for 2013</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/west-virginia-football-game-game-predictions-2013" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">West Virginia Game-by-Game Predictions for 2013</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://beta.athlonsports.com/college-football/kliff-kingsbury-returns-home-lead-texas-tech" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">Kliff Kingsbury Returns Home to Texas Tech</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://beta.athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12s-top-heisman-contenders-2013" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">Big 12&#39;s Top Heisman Contenders for 2013</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://beta.athlonsports.com/college-football/five-ways-fix-texas-football" style="font-size: 16px; " target="_blank">Five Ways to Fix Texas Football</a></strong></strong></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/baylor-bears">Baylor Bears</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/iowa-state-cyclones">Iowa State Cyclones</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/kansas-jayhawks">Kansas Jayhawks</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/kansas-state-wildcats">Kansas State Wildcats</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-state-cowboys">Oklahoma State Cowboys</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/tcu-horned-frogs">TCU Horned Frogs</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-tech-red-raiders">Texas Tech Red Raiders</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/west-virginia-mountaineers">West Virginia Mountaineers</a></div></div></div>Wed, 07 Aug 2013 11:20:33 +0000Athlon Sports25262 at http://athlonsports.comRanking the Big 12's Top Heisman Candidates for 2015http://athlonsports.com/college-football/ranking-big-12s-top-heisman-candidates
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Ranking the Big 12&#039;s Top Heisman Candidates for 2015</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/47369-1/SamajePerine3004.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 327px; margin: 4px; float: right;" />The last time a <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/conference/big-12" target="_blank"><strong>Big 12</strong></a> player won the Heisman Trophy, Texas A&amp;M and Missouri were conference members. It has only been four years since Robert Griffin III of Baylor was named the Heisman Trophy, but so much has happened since then that it feels a bit longer. Could the brief drought be brought to an end this season? It sure could with TCU&rsquo;s Trevone Boykin among the national favorites (along with a handful of players from Ohio State and the SEC).</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Related: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-tens-top-15-heisman-candidates-2015" target="_blank">The Big Ten&#39;s Top 15 Heisman Candidates for 2015</a></strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>History would suggest things look pretty good for Boykin too. A quarterback has won the Heisman Trophy all but two times since the 2000 season. Big 12 quarterbacks have a knack for being considered among Heisman favorites on a regular basis with players like Griffin, Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy and Vince Young in years past.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But it has been a while since TCU had a quarterback worthy of such accolades. Boykin finished a distant fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting last season, but now he is among the favorites, and for good reason. But take a look beyond Boykin and you will see a handful of players around the Big 12 that could be ready to make some Heisman Trophy statements, and a number of long-shot underdogs.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>There is <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2015-all-conference-team" target="_blank">some good talent around the conference</a>. Here are some of the players with the best shots to be in the Heisman Trophy discussion and others just to take note of this season.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">The Favorite</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Trevone Boykin, QB, TCU</strong></p><p>After throwing for 3,714 yards and 30 touchdowns while leading TCU into the thick of the College Football Playoff conversation and ending the season with a big win over Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl, Boykin enters the 2015 season as one of the overall favorites in the Heisman Trophy discussion. Boykin really showed what he can do as TCU opened up the offense last fall, and should once again be equipped to put up big numbers while leading the Horned Frogs to a potential Big 12 championship. Leading TCU to a conference title and a <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/why-tcu-will-or-wont-make-college-football-playoff-2015" target="_blank">possible Playoff spot</a> will keep Boykin ahead of the pack in the Heisman race.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">Next in Line</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma</strong></p><p>In a season that should see plenty of production from some young running backs around the country, Oklahoma may have the best in the Big 12 with Perine. He finished the 2014 season strong, piling up 1,713 yards rushing and 21 touchdowns. Along the way he grabbed the single-game rushing record with a 427-yard afternoon against Kansas. If the Sooners are going to make a run in the Big 12, Perine will be leading the charge in Norman.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">On the Radar</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Seth Russell, QB, Baylor</strong></p><p>Baylor is home to the most recent Heisman Trophy winner out of the Big 12 with Griffin receiving the hardware in 2011. Could Russell be the next?</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/47322-1/MasonRudolph300.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 327px; margin: 4px; float: right;" />Mason Rudolph, QB, Oklahoma State</strong></p><p>The sophomore signal-caller&nbsp;hopes to join Barry Sanders as the only Heisman winners in Oklahoma State history. If the final few games last season were a <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-breakout-players-2015" target="_blank">preview of things to come</a>, then things look promising in Stillwater with Rudolph under center.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Shock Linwood, RB, Baylor</strong></p><p>Baylor figures to put up plenty of offense, and Linwood should be a key part of the system. After rushing for 1,252 yards and 16 touchdowns, Linwood should post similar numbers, if not better, this fall.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Josh Doctson, WR, TCU</strong></p><p>Boykin may be the top contender for the Heisman Trophy out of the Big 12, but one of his top targets in the field could enter the conversation as a sleeper. Doctson led the Horned Frogs in receiving last season (1,108 yards, 11 TDs) and could be looking at similar production in a loaded returning offense this fall.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma</strong></p><p>The last Sooner to win the Heisman Trophy was Bradford in 2008. Mayfield is far from Bradford, but could be in a good position after transferring from Texas Tech. As Oklahoma looks to open up the offense this season with new offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley, Mayfield could be well suited to get things rolling quickly.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">Ultimate Sleepers</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Pat Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech</strong></p><p>With a veteran offensive line coming back in the fall, Mahomes should feel confident leading the offense at the start of the season after taking over in the middle of 2014. As is usually the case at Texas Tech though, big numbers do not necessarily translate to Heisman contenders.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Corey Coleman, WR, Baylor</strong></p><p>Oh, another Baylor offensive player? Sure, why not. The Bears will have multiple ways to put up offensive numbers, and that includes Baylor&rsquo;s leading returning receiver. Coleman went over 1,000 yards in 2014 with 11 touchdowns, and will be a primary target on one side of the field.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Allen Lazard, WR, Iowa State</strong></p><p>Odds are a player from Iowa State will not win the Heisman Trophy, or even make the trip to New York City. However, the Cyclones&rsquo; Lazard could be an intriguing prospect. Lazard may be one of the top wide receivers in the Big 12.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Rushel Shell, RB, West Virginia</strong></p><p>It has been a while since West Virginia had a player worthy of some Heisman buzz, but Shell could have a chance to be the star of the Mountaineers&rsquo; offense if he stays healthy.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Tyrone Swoopes, QB, Texas</strong></p><p>Running back Ricky Williams was the last Longhorns player to win the Heisman Trophy (in 1998), although there have been some worthy nominees in the years since (Vince Young, Colt McCoy). Swoopes (or Jerrod Heard) should be considered big-time long shots, but if Charlie Strong can mold Swoopes to be his next Teddy Bridgewater, then we could see some good things in Austin.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">If You Believe Defensive Players Are Worth Discussing</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Shawn Oakman, DE, Baylor</strong></p><p>If a defensive player is going to win the Heisman Trophy (a true rarity) Baylor lineman Oakman could be the most likely out of the Big 12. The physical specimen is difficult to contain on the line and could be the top defensive player in the conference this season.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Eric Striker, LB, Oklahoma</strong></p><p>Oklahoma&rsquo;s linebacker is coming off a season with nine sacks and 17 tackles for a loss. Striker will be everywhere around the football when he is on the field, and if the Sooners do well this fall he could become more of a household name.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Karl Joseph, S, West Virginia</strong></p><p>Joseph is probably the best defensive back in the entire Big 12. That&rsquo;s good news, as Joseph will be busy trying to make plays if the front of the Mountaineers&rsquo; defense struggles.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><em>&mdash; Written by Kevin McGuire, who is part of the Athlon Contributor Network and a member of the Football Writers Association of America and National Football Foundation. McGuire also writes for <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://CollegeFootballTalk.com" target="_blank">CollegeFootballTalk.com</a>. Follow him on Twitter <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/KevinOnCFB" target="_blank">@KevinOnCFB</a>.</em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/baylor-bears">Baylor Bears</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-state-cowboys">Oklahoma State Cowboys</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/tcu-horned-frogs">TCU Horned Frogs</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-tech-red-raiders">Texas Tech Red Raiders</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/west-virginia-mountaineers">West Virginia Mountaineers</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-50 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Players:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/trevone-boykin">Trevone Boykin</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/samaje-perine">Samaje Perine</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/pat-mahomes">Pat Mahomes</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/corey-coleman">Corey Coleman</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/allen-lazard">Allen Lazard</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/rushel-shell">Rushel Shell</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/karl-joseph">Karl Joseph</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/eric-striker">Eric Striker</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/shawn-oakman">Shawn Oakman</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/tyrone-swoopes">Tyrone Swoopes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/jerrod-heard">Jerrod Heard</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-players/seth-russell">Seth Russell</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/mason-rudolph">Mason Rudolph</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div>Thu, 30 Jul 2015 13:30:00 +0000Kevin McGuire104948 at http://athlonsports.comBottom-Line Sensibility for AD Steve Patterson Causing Problems at Texashttp://athlonsports.com/college-football/bottom-line-sensibility-ad-steve-patterson-causing-problems-university-texas
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Bottom-Line Sensibility for AD Steve Patterson Causing Problems at University of Texas</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/24311-1/Texasinset.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 380px; margin: 4px; float: right;" />If you are the athletic director of a sports program that raked in over $161 million in 2014 and is part of a university that receives $3.45 billion in endowments what do you tell your athletic staff at meal time? If you are University of <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/teams/texas-longhorns" target="_blank"><strong>Texas</strong></a> AD Steve Patterson you tell your coaches to pay up!</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Several reports have emerged criticizing Patterson&rsquo;s bottom-line CEO narrative with Longhorn coaches&nbsp;leaving their positions&nbsp;over the $10 per meal fee now charged to eat in the athletic dining hall.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In fairness to Patterson (above right, with football head coach Charlie Strong and former University of Texas president Bill Powers)&nbsp;each coach is given 30 free visits to the athletic dining hall each year, or 2.5 meals per month, to sit with other coaches and players bonding outside a group&rsquo;s given sport. Patterson&rsquo;s rationale is to shave $300,000 a year off the budget, the estimated cost of feeding the various Longhorn coaching staffs throughout a given year.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Another possible point in Patterson&rsquo;s favor is the $7.50 discount each coach receives per paid meal. The cost of each meal is valued at $17.50. A mark against Patterson is the $0.50 price increase from last year. They do not take credit cards and per the <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/272421222/Ut-Austin-Athletics-Staff-Dining#scribd">memo sent out by Dave Marmion</a> under Patterson&rsquo;s orders on Aug. 11, 2014, &ldquo;Like any cash business, if you show up without cash you will need to go find some (cash) or eat somewhere else that day.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Generally speaking when one thinks about coaches coupled with money many relate to the million dollar contracts head coaches receive in football and basketball. Those types of salaries do not translate to other sports like tennis, swimming and diving, and so on. The greater impact of charging for meals are met at the lower coaching levels where video coordinators, assistant strength coaches, and graduate assistants essentially work for free or next to nothing to get experience on their resume to start the tough climb up their coaching ladders. In the long run this negative effect works its way back up to the hierarchy of the coaching staff. &nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The rumblings from Patterson&rsquo;s underlings have made their way above his&nbsp;head with new Texas President Greg Fenves giving his AD a directive to change his ways in mid-July.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Patterson&rsquo;s personality has not just rubbed his subordinates wrong but has also upset donors and alumni as well. A <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.scout.com/college/texas/story/1556266-hd-exclusive-ad-patterson-facing-heat" target="_blank">report from HornsDigest.com</a> cited a story by Sally Lehr, an alumni member in Austin for a 50th reunion celebration, saying Patterson asked for $25 from each of the 158 people in town for the celebration to step foot on the field at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Lehr explained the run-in stating, &ldquo;He (Patterson) said it was expensive to allow people on the field. They had to turn on the lights. They had to have people leading the tour and a groundskeeper (on hand). He said if athletics had to pay for all of that, they might have to cut the donation they made to the UT library. I was stunned by his arrogance and avarice.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The bad publicity from the occasion gets worse when Lehr adds that the initial cost was supposed to be $15 per person but was then raised to $25. To make the ill will between Lehr, who attended the celebration with former Longhorns&rsquo; athletes in the mix, and Patterson a notch worse, Lehr&rsquo;s stepfather was the sports information director for the Longhorns from 1961-83.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>One might think the 57-year-old Patterson would have more of a soft spot for other alumni being a graduate of Texas himself.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Patterson has little support from the fans after he raised football ticket prices. After the Longhorns posted a 6-7 season in 2014, ticket prices saw an average increase of 21.5 percent. Because of the jump in prices fans said thanks but no thanks. The total number of 2014 season tickets who did not renew was in the neighborhood of 10,000 for the 2015 schedule.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>One would think Patterson would have a better pulse on the fanbase and Texans in general,&nbsp;as he and his family have been deeply intertwined in Texas sports for decades. His father, Ray Patterson, was the general manager for the Houston Rockets from 1972-90. Steve succeeded his father as the Rockets&#39; GM,&nbsp;holding the position from 1989-93. After leaving the Rockets he was the Governor, President&nbsp;and General Manger of the Houston Aeros (hockey) and then became the Senior Vice President and Chief Development Officer for the Houston Texans (1997-2003). In 2003, Patterson returned to the NBA as President of the Portland Trailblazers. On March 28, 2012 he was hired as the Vice President for University Athletics and Athletics Director for Arizona State. When DeLoss Dodds retired as AD,&nbsp;Patterson was hired to replace him at Texas on Nov. 5, 2013.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>With Patterson in control of the athletic department for nearly two years the Longhorns have won one national championship (Swimming and Diving) and notched eight Big 12 Conference Championships (Golf &ndash; 2, Swimming and Diving &ndash; 2, Baseball &ndash; 1, Tennis &ndash; 1, Track and Field Indoor &ndash; 1, and Track and Field Outdoor &ndash; 1).</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Banners in big-money sports like basketball and football will be the determining factors on how long Patterson maintains his position. For now his seemingly tenuous grip on that role is a big question mark with two new coaches in Austin, men&rsquo;s basketball coach Shaka Smart (formerly at VCU) and second-year head football coach Charlie Strong (Louisville).</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Both Strong and Smart are rightfully lauded as winning coaches due to their resumes,&nbsp;which should give Patterson some breathing room. If Strong and Smart grow tired of Patterson&rsquo;s antics while producing winning teams a change at the top of the Longhorns&#39; athletics hierarchy&nbsp;could potentially&nbsp;come much sooner than expected.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><em>&mdash; Written by Ryan Wright, who is part of the Athlon Contributor Network and an established media professional with more than two decades&#39; worth of experience. Over the years, Wright has written for numerous sites and publications and he recently started his own recruiting site,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.recruitingnewsguru.com" target="_blank">www.recruitingnewsguru.com</a>. Follow him on Twitter <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://twitter.com/HogManinLA" target="_blank">@HogManinLA</a>.</em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-50 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Players:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-players/steve-patterson">Steve Patterson</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div>Tue, 28 Jul 2015 15:30:00 +0000Ryan Wright104902 at http://athlonsports.comCollege Football's Top 25 Non-Conference Games for 2015http://athlonsports.com/college-football/college-football-top-25-non-conference-games-watch-2015
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Top 25 Non-Conference Games to watch in 2015</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p>There is a lot that is still unknown about the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football" target="_blank">College Football</a> Playoff Committee.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>One thing that was learned about the new postseason format in year number one is that the voters value strength of schedule. Teams have ramped-up non-conference scheduling almost instantly (See: No. 4 below) and the results are a healthy list of top-level games.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It may take a few full seasons for the new trends to take hold across the nation (like, say, in the Big 12) but that doesn&#39;t mean 2015 isn&#39;t loaded with great non-conference matchups.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td>Away</td><td>Home</td><td>Date</td></tr><tr><td>1.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30694-1/Oregon_001.jpg" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-state-spartans.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 12</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>Two national title contenders finishing the back half of a home-and-home? Yes, please. The Spartans will be fired up at home and have revenge on their minds after the 46-27 loss in Eugene last fall. The winner will get a huge Playoff notch in its belt in what should be one of the best games of the year regardless of conference.</p></td></tr><tr><td>2.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/usc-trojans.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Oct. 17</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The 87th meeting between USC and ND could carry a lot of Playoff weight if all goes according to plan for both. USC smoked the Irish in L.A. last season and is 5-1 in its last six trips to South Bend. However, that lone loss came in the Trojans&#39; last visit two seasons ago.</p></td></tr><tr><td>3.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/clemson-tigers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Oct. 3</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">These two historic programs have only met twice. Clemson won the last meeting 16-10 in 1979 in South Bend. Two years earlier, Joe Montana led the Irish to a 21-17 victory in Death Valley in the battle of two top-15 teams. Both teams could be ranked in the top 10 when they meet Oct. 3 for the rubber match.</td></tr><tr><td>4.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/wisconsin-badgers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/alabama-crimson-tide.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 5*</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">The modern Big Ten power and traditional SEC power have only met once in history, a 15-0 Badgers win at home in 1928. The fast track in Arlington, Texas, should help an already superior Alabama team. The Crimson Tide is a 10-point favorite over the Big Red. A win by Wisconsin would rock the college football world right out of the gate.</td></tr><tr><td>5.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/oklahoma-sooners.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/tennessee-volunteers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td>Sept. 12</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">Tennessee and Oklahoma have played three times. The Vols won in 1939 while OU took a 1968 meeting and a 34-10 outcome last season. The game last fall was closer than the 24-point margin and this year&rsquo;s battle means a lot for both teams. Both have conference title aspirations and an early win over a ranked foe could catapult one into national conversations.</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><strong>Related: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/sec-college-football-teams-rock-and-roll-bands" target="_blank">SEC Football Teams as Rock and Roll</a></strong></td></tr><tr><td>6.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-a-m-aggies.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/arizona-state-sun-devils.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 5*</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The Aggies and Sun Devils have never met before and fans on both sides should be thoroughly entertained throughout the pseudo-neutral site season opener. Two great offenses should light up the Houston skyline en route to a feather-in-the-cap non-con win.</p></td></tr><tr><td>7.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/stanford-cardinal.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Nov. 28</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>This should be a physical, hard-hitting affair once again. And both are Playoff sleeper teams. Stanford has won three straight in the series at home and four of the last six overall. Notre Dame needed an epic fourth quarter to beat the Cardinal 14-10 last fall in South Bend.</p></td></tr><tr><td>8.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 5</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>Two of the top three winningest programs in college football history will do battle in the best true home game of Week 1. Notre Dame has won four straight and eight of the 10 total meetings all-time and is a touchdown favorite for the season opener. Both quarterback situations should be interesting to track.</p></td></tr><tr><td>9.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/44740-1/FSU-logo-new.jpg" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/florida-gators.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Nov. 28</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The Gators lead the Sunshine State rivalry 34-23-2 all-time, but the Noles have been the better team since Jimbo Fisher arrived. Florida State has won four of the last five, including his last two trips inside The Swamp.</p></td></tr><tr><td>10.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-bulldogs.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-tech-yellow-jackets.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Nov. 28</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">Paul Johnson&#39;s squad broke through with a huge 30-24 win over the Dawgs in Athens last season. It was just Johnson&#39;s second win in seven tries against the Dawgs and his first since beating Mark Richt in his first year in Atlanta in 2008. There is an outside chance both teams are poised to play in a championship game a week after the meeting.&nbsp;</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><strong>Related: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/acc-college-football-teams-rock-and-roll-bands" target="_blank">ACC Football Teams as Rock and Roll</a></strong></td></tr><tr><td>11.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/georgia-tech-yellow-jackets.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">The Jackets and Irish will be playing for the 35th time &mdash; 27 of which have resulted in Notre Dame wins. The last time these two met, however, Georgia Tech crushed the Golden Domers 33-3 in South Bend. There is a good chance both of these teams could reach 10 wins in 2015.</td></tr><tr><td>12.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ohio-state-buckeyes.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/virginia-tech-hokies.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 7</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">National television on Labor Day Night to begin a national title defense sounds like fun to me. Bud Foster and one of the nastiest defenses in the nation will test whichever Buckeyes quarterback Urban Meyer decides to run out there. One coach desperately needs a national statement win and the other coach has major revenge on the mind after the Hokies&#39; upset win last fall.</td></tr><tr><td>13.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/louisville-cardinals.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/auburn-tigers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 5*</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">Bobby Petrino has won all 10 season openers but will have a tough time against the heavily favored Tigers. Louisville won the only previous meeting between the two programs, a 16-3 decision over Auburn in Birmingham back in 1974.</td></tr><tr><td>14.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/clemson-tigers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/south-carolina-gamecocks.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Nov. 28</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">The Tigers own a 66-42-4 all-time series lead but are coming off their first win in the rivalry since 2008. Clemson could be eyeing a Playoff bid in the season finale and will be looking for its first win in Williams-Brice Stadium since 2007. Dabo Swinney is 2-5 against Steve Spurrier&#39;s Gamecocks.</td></tr><tr><td>15.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/40335-2/tcu.jpg" style="line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 19px; margin-top: 4px; margin-bottom: 4px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/minnesota-golden-gophers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td>Sept. 3</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">There are few chances in the non-con this fall for the Big Ten to make a statement than on Thursday night to open the season in the Twin Cities. TCU will be a top-ranked team and is an 18-point favorite heading to TCF Bank Stadium. The Frogs stomped the Gophers 30-7 in Fort Worth last fall but Minnesota has won the only other meeting between the two &mdash; a 1974 victory in Minneapolis.</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><strong>Related: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-college-football-teams-rock-and-roll-bands" target="_blank">Big 12 Football Teams as Rock and Roll Bands</a></strong></td></tr><tr><td>16.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30742-2/BYU.jpg" style="margin-top: 5px; margin-bottom: 5px; line-height: 20px; width: 30px; height: 20px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/missouri-tigers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td>Nov. 14*</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">A bizarre but interesting matchup of underrated coaches takes place at an odd time, halfway through November. The Tigers and Cougars have only played once before, a 21-17 BYU win in the 1983 Holiday Bowl. Taysom Hill vs. Maty Mauk late in the year sounds fun to me (if both can stay healthy).</td></tr><tr><td>17.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/washington-huskies.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/boise-state-broncos.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 4</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">Chris Petersen returns to Boise in charge of a Pac-12 name brand that is in clear rebuilding mode. The blue turf won&#39;t be nearly as welcoming as the Broncos have eyes on another Mountain West title and New Year&#39;s Day bowl berth. The Huskies&#39; major questions under center and on the D-line will have to be answered to leave Idaho with a win.</td></tr><tr><td>18.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/nebraska-cornhuskers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/miami-fl-hurricanes.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">Nebraska&#39;s 41-31 win in Lincoln last year broke the all-time series tie (6-5). Both teams should be good enough to make a run in their respective leagues but both head coaches need a marquee win (for different reasons). However, there is no national title on the line like in many previous Miami-Nebraska bouts.</td></tr><tr><td>19.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-wolverines.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/utah-utes.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 3</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">These two have only met three times with all three games taking place in Ann Arbor. Utah has won two of those meetings, including a 26-10 thumping of the Wolverines last season. On a Thursday night with Jim Harbaugh leading the way, this game should be much more intriguing.&nbsp;</td></tr><tr><td>20.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30742-2/BYU.jpg" style="line-height: 20px; width: 30px; height: 20px; margin-top: 5px; margin-bottom: 5px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/michigan-wolverines.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 26</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">Older fans of both sides will likely remember the first and only meeting between BYU and Michigan. The Cougars won the 1984 Holiday Bowl 24-17 en route to a national championship. The Maize and Blue will be finishing a brutal first month of the Jim Harbaugh era that features two Pac-12 foes and the Taysom Hill-led Cougars.</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><strong>Related: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-ten-college-football-teams-rock-and-roll-bands" target="_blank">Big Ten Football Teams as Rock and Roll Bands</a></strong></td></tr><tr><td>21.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30742-2/BYU.jpg" style="line-height: 20px; width: 30px; height: 20px; margin-top: 5px; margin-bottom: 5px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/ucla-bruins.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">The Cougars and Bruins have played 10 times with UCLA claiming seven wins. However, BYU has won the last two meetings, including a 58-0 embarrassment in 2008. Jim Mora&#39;s defense will need to be on its toes early against an athlete like Taysom Hill.</td></tr><tr><td>22.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/california-golden-bears.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">This could be a program-defining win for Sonny Dykes and Cal in Austin in Week 3. The Horns are at home and more talented (and can actually play defense) but quarterback Jared Goff is a superstar in the making and could set himself up for a nationally acclaimed season with a win in Texas. The Bears are 0-5 all-time against the Longhorns.</td></tr><tr><td>23.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/south-carolina-gamecocks.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/north-carolina-tar-heels.png" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 30px; height: 30px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 3*</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">The Carolina Bowl has only taken place twice since 1991 with the South side winning both times (2007, 2013). The season opener features two defenses that are in desperate need of improvement if either team has any prayer of competing in their respective divisions.</td></tr><tr><td>24.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/30742-2/BYU.jpg" style="line-height: 20px; width: 30px; height: 20px; margin-top: 5px; margin-bottom: 5px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/nebraska-cornhuskers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Sept. 5</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">The color schemes alone will look amazing on the floor of towering Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. BYU and Nebraska get their seasons started in style in the first-ever meeting of the two national brands. Fans who are unfamiliar with Cougars dual-threat quarterback Taysom Hill will learn all about him (if healthy) and Big Red Nation will get their first look at the Mike Riley-led Huskers.</td></tr><tr><td>25.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/pittsburgh-panthers.png" style="line-height:20px;width:30px;height:30px;" /></td><td>Nov. 7</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The Panthers and Irish have played each other pretty even, with Notre Dame winning seven of the 12 meetings dating back to 1999. The last six played in Pittsburgh have been split, including a memorable 28-21 Panthers upset win in the last tangle.&nbsp;</p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><strong>Related: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/pac-12-college-football-teams-rock-and-roll-bands" target="_blank">Pac-12 Football Teams as Rock and Roll Bands</a></strong></td></tr></tbody></table><p><em>* - neutral field</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">Best of the Rest:</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Maryland at West Virginia, Sept. 26</p><p>Louisville at Kentucky, Nov. 28</p><p>Ole Miss at Memphis, Oct. 17</p><p>Texas Tech at Arkansas, Sept. 19</p><p>Miami at Cincinnati, Oct. 1</p><p>Iowa at Iowa State, Sept. 12</p><p>Boston College vs. Notre Dame, Nov. 21*</p><p>Pitt at Iowa, Sept. 19</p><p>Stanford at Northwestern, Sept. 5</p><p>LSU at Syracuse, Sept. 26</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/acc">ACC</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/pac-12">Pac-12</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-ten">Big Ten</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/sec">SEC</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/alabama-crimson-tide">Alabama Crimson Tide</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/arizona-state-sun-devils">Arizona State Sun Devils</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/arkansas-razorbacks">Arkansas Razorbacks</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/auburn-tigers">Auburn Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/byu-cougars">BYU Cougars</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/clemson-tigers">Clemson Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-gators">Florida Gators</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/florida-state-seminoles">Florida State Seminoles</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/georgia-bulldogs">Georgia Bulldogs</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/georgia-tech-yellow-jackets">Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/louisville-cardinals">Louisville Cardinals</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/miami-hurricanes">Miami Hurricanes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/michigan-state-spartans">Michigan State Spartans</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/michigan-wolverines">Michigan Wolverines</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/minnesota-golden-gophers">Minnesota Golden Gophers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/missouri-tigers">Missouri Tigers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/nebraska-cornhuskers">Nebraska Cornhuskers</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/north-carolina-tar-heels">North Carolina Tar Heels</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/notre-dame-fighting-irish">Notre Dame Fighting Irish</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ohio-state-buckeyes">Ohio State Buckeyes</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ole-miss-rebels">Ole Miss Rebels</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oregon-ducks">Oregon Ducks</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/stanford-cardinal">Stanford Cardinal</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/tcu-horned-frogs">TCU Horned Frogs</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/tennessee-volunteers">Tennessee Volunteers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-am-aggies">Texas A&amp;M Aggies</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/ucla-bruins">UCLA Bruins</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/usc-trojans">USC Trojans</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/utah-utes">Utah Utes</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/virginia-tech-hokies">Virginia Tech Hokies</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/washington-huskies">Washington Huskies</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/west-virginia-mountaineers">West Virginia Mountaineers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/wisconsin-badgers">Wisconsin Badgers</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div>Mon, 20 Jul 2015 14:00:00 +0000Braden Gall104709 at http://athlonsports.comTop 10 Big 12 Non-Conference Games of 2015http://athlonsports.com/college-football/top-10-big-12-non-conference-games-2015
<div class="field field-name-field-teaser field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Top 10 Big 12 Non-Conference Games of 2015</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p>The <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football" target="_blank">College Football</a> Playoff Committee proved the general trend of tougher scheduling last fall.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2015-predictions" target="_blank">Big 12</a>&nbsp;may have two major playoff contenders but scheduling could once again be a problem for this league. Whether the <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2015-predictions" target="_blank">Big 12</a> wants to admit it or not, Baylor&#39;s non-conference schedule was a huge factor in why the league was left out of the postseason tournament.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Unfortunately, there aren&#39;t many chances for marquee wins in the non-conference in 2015 for the <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2015-predictions" target="_blank">Big 12</a>. Sure, there are some juicy matchups but the most important non-conference game for either Baylor or TCU features an 18-point spread.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"><tbody><tr><td>&nbsp;</td><td>Away</td><td>Home</td><td>Date</td></tr><tr><td>1.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="width: 40px; height: 40px; margin: 2px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/notre-dame-fighting-irish.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 5</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>Two of the top three winningest programs in college football history will do battle in the best true home game of Week 1. Notre Dame has won four straight and eight of the 10 total meetings all-time and is a touchdown favorite for the season opener. Both quarterback situations should be interesting to track.</p></td></tr><tr><td>2.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/oklahoma-sooners.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/tennessee-volunteers.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 12</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>Tennessee and Oklahoma have played three times. The Vols won in 1939 while OU took a 1968 meeting and a 34-10 outcome last season. The game last fall was closer than the 24-point margin and this year&rsquo;s battle means a lot for both teams. Both have conference title aspirations and an early win over a ranked foe could catapult one into the national conversations.</p></td></tr><tr><td>3.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/40335-2/tcu.jpg" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 19px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/minnesota-golden-gophers.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 3*</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">There are few chances in the non-con this fall for the Big Ten to make a statement than on Thursday night to open the season in the Twin Cities. TCU will be a top-ranked team and is an 18-point favorite heading to TCF Bank Stadium. The Frogs stomped the Gophers 30-7 in Fort Worth last fall but Minnesota has won the only other meeting between the two &mdash; a 1974 win in Minneapolis.</td></tr><tr><td>4.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/california-golden-bears.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-longhorns.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">This could be a program-defining win for Sonny Dykes and Cal in Austin in Week 3. Or a terrifying second loss in three games to start the year for Texas. The Horns are at home and more talented (and can actually play defense), but quarterback Jared Goff is a superstar in the making and could set himself up for a nationally acclaimed season with a win in Texas. The Bears are 0-5 all-time against the Longhorns. This is a must-win for Charlie Strong.</td></tr><tr><td>5.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/40222-2/maryland.jpg" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/west-virginia-mountaineers.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 26</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4">This is sort of an underrated rivalry that has seen 51 different editions. West Virginia has won 27 total and eight of the last nine meetings, including an epic 40-37 victory in College Park last fall. These are two very interesting coaches who know each other very well.</td></tr><tr><td>6.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/texas-tech-red-raiders.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/arkansas-razorbacks.png" style="line-height:20px;width:40px;height:40px;" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The old conference foes reunited last season for the first time since 1991. Arkansas owns a commanding 29-7 all-time lead and added to it last year with an impressive 49-28 showing in Lubbock. The Hogs are better this year and at home. Good luck, Kliff.</p></td></tr><tr><td>7.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/iowa-hawkeyes.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/iowa-state-cyclones.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 12</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The heated in-state rivalry has been a lone bright spot for Cyclones head coach Paul Rhoads. He&rsquo;s 3-3 against the Hawkeyes&nbsp;in six years as the head coach in Ames but has won three out of the last four against Kirk Ferentz&#39; team. This has been high-scoring (44-41) and really ugly (9-6) but has routinely been extremely close.</p></td></tr><tr><td>8.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/44922-1/latech.jpg" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 51px; height: 34px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/kansas-state-wildcats.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The Bulldogs and Wildcats have met three times before and this is where the drop off in non-conference games takes place. Louisiana Tech is picked to win the West Division in C-USA and offers up the toughest test for KSU outside of the league. Kansas State has won the last two meetings by a combined score of 94-17.</p></td></tr><tr><td>9.</td><td><img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/i.athcdn.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/southern-methodist-mustangs.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/40335-2/tcu.jpg" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 19px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 19</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>The Battle for the Iron Skillet in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex will be played for the 95<sup>th</sup> time this fall. TCU leads the series 47-40-7 all-time and has won 13 of the last 15 meetings. The Frogs will be a massive favorite but it&rsquo;s a rivalry, so it makes the list.</p></td></tr><tr><td>10.</td><td><img alt="" src="http://images.athlonsports.com/d/42560-1/GeorgiaSouthern.jpg" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 50px; height: 31px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td><img alt="" src="http://i.athcdn.com.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/teams/college-football/logos/100x100/west-virginia-mountaineers.png" style="margin: 2px; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; width: 40px; height: 40px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></td><td>Sept. 5</td></tr><tr><td colspan="4"><p>This is where the Big 12 non-con scheduling is at these days. A quality, option-oriented Sun Belt team against a pass-happy, middle-of-the-pack Big 12 team is a top-10 game. The Eagles-Mountaineers matchup is intriguing for football nerds.</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>&nbsp;</p><h4 class="athlon-medium-title" style="font-family:helveticaneue-medium,helvetica;font-size:26px;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:0em;line-height:1em;margin:0;">Best of the Rest:</h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Iowa State at Toledo, Sept. 19</p><p>Memphis at Kansas, Sept. 12</p><p>Kansas at Rutgers, Sept. 26</p><p>Akron at Oklahoma, Sept. 5</p><p>Baylor at SMU, Sept 4</p><p>Rice at Texas, Sept. 12</p><p>Kansas State at UTSA, Sept. 12</p><p>Rice at Baylor, Sept. 26</p><p>Northern Iowa at Iowa State, Sept. 5</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-48 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Conferences:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-conferences/big-12">Big 12</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-49 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">CFB Teams:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/baylor-bears">Baylor Bears</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/iowa-state-cyclones">Iowa State Cyclones</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/kansas-jayhawks">Kansas Jayhawks</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/kansas-state-wildcats">Kansas State Wildcats</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/oklahoma-state-cowboys">Oklahoma State Cowboys</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/tcu-horned-frogs">TCU Horned Frogs</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-longhorns">Texas Longhorns</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/texas-tech-red-raiders">Texas Tech Red Raiders</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/cfb-teams/west-virginia-mountaineers">West Virginia Mountaineers</a></div></div></div><div class="field-collection-container clearfix"><div class="field field-name-field-must-read-links field-type-field-collection field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Must Read Links:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="field-collection-view clearfix view-mode-full field-collection-view-final"><div class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links clearfix" class="entity entity-field-collection-item field-collection-item-field-must-read-links">
<div class="content">
<div class="field field-name-field-exclude-unless-partner field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude Unless Partner:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-exclude-from-feeds field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Exclude From Games:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Include In Games</div></div></div>Thu, 16 Jul 2015 14:00:00 +0000Braden Gall104660 at http://athlonsports.com